Typically, big businesses and consumers associate Thanksgiving with another day: Black Friday. This unofficial holiday event can bring your retail store lots of profits, but you also don’t want to feel resentment from your employees. As a business owner, you should find ways to please your staff and community on these two big days of the year.
It is important that you acknowledge the hard work and dedication of your team all year round, but especially on such a chaotic day as Black Friday. The last thing your want is for your staff to feel neglected, unappreciated, and even petition against working on Thanksgiving or the next day, which seems to be the problem large companies are having this year.
Keep in mind that Thanksgiving is the one special day you and your workers have to spend with family and friends. So is it really worth having them all work on Thanksgiving or even extremely early the day after? Make a professional decision by reflecting on how grateful you are for the growth of your company, your job, and customers. Then, take some time to show your appreciation for your staff by doing the following:
• Host a Thanksgiving Dinner for your employees either the day before or even on Thanksgiving. Close the store and celebrate with your extended family where no stress or work is allowed!
• Set up a raffle to spread some holiday cheer. Give away gift certificates, baskets, and more to get everyone excited for the next few, busy days.
• Surprise your staff by letting them leave at noon the day before Thanksgiving. Also, be reasonable and respectful of the time they have with their families when making the schedule for Black Friday.
• Give personal note to each staff member letting them know why you are thankful for all that they do. This is a great way to boost morale and let your employees know you care.
At Nahai Insurance Services, we hope you are able to make this Thanksgiving meaningful with the help of some of these tips. Staff appreciation is important to maintain all year round, but taking the time to do so this week makes it that much more special. Adjusting the holiday schedule to something a little less chaotic will allow you and your staff to connect, reflect, and share thankfulness together!